17

Nov 2012

Ironman Eve -- Arizona 2012

It's been an interesting day here in Tempe. It started off with a swim in the lake followed by a short brick and then a trip to the transition area to drop off our stuff. This process is becoming more confusing to me despite the fact that this isn't my first rodeo.

It's not my fault though -- the rules keep changing. For example:

1. bike and run "special foods" v. bike and run "special needs" -- at some races, you can put whatever you want in the bags but at others, you can you only put in food and the bags will be disposed of after the race.

2. helmets and shoes -- can go on the bike in some races but not on the bike in other races.

3. transition bags -- are either accessible on race morning or not accessible on race morning.

My brain is too small to keep up with the variations. I showed up in transition expecting to put my helmet and shoes on the bike but quickly noticed nobody else had done so. My transition bags were prepped with everything in advance (not a bad thing), expecting I would not have access tomorrow. And I've now loaded my bike special bag with special needs as well as foods.

Blah blah blah. Just a bunch of whining from another prima donna athlete, I know.

I'll stop the whining now.

Some pics for your entertainment. In no particular order...

My trusty Argon --

Will somebody ride this on race day? --

For those of you who have never seen transition bags, finding your bag is like a game of "Where's Waldo?" --

Setting up the buoys for race day --

A nice shot of the lake --

In order to understand the next shot, you need to see the lake from the side --

Tempe Town Lake Panoramic Shot --

I wondered why there were no wetsuit manufacturers present at the expo. It makes it difficult to sell a wetsuit when --

Adding to the chaos on the day prior to race day, the local college had a (*)foot ball game which created a parking problem near transition.

* For those of you not familiar with my particular brand of humor, the separation of the word football is my way of poking fun at my friends who think there is another sport other than triathlon.

A panoramic shot of the parking, partying and foot ball game area --

On the way back to the hotel, I notice various forms of art --

I saw this on the wall, I have no clue as to what it means but it was a bike so how can you go wrong. I would only add one comment: Your seat is too low! --

Interesting sky --

Welcome to Arizona where it's flat. Except for in the mountains --

When cutting through the dirt, you should (and when I say "you", I really mean "I" should be aware that the land is filled with --

... and the thorns end up in the dirt... which end up in your shoes... which end up on the carpet in your hotel room... which end up sticking you in the bottom of your foot a few hours later... which make you yelp like a little girl.